Electronic devices, such as smartphones and tablet computers, continue to evolve through increasing levels of performance and functionality as manufacturers design products that offer consumers greater convenience and productivity. One area where performance gains have been realized is in gesture recognition technology. Electronic devices with integrated gesture recognition systems (GRSs) can be controlled without the need for tactile or touch input, which has distinct advantages.
Gesturing is much more natural than manipulating control structures, such as buttons, which can wear out, or touch screens, which are prone to smudging. GRSs allow for gloved operation and will also better accommodate the smaller form factors of next-generation devices. Currently, however, new innovation is still needed to overcome difficulties associated with the use of GRSs in electronic devices. Some GRSs, for example, can fail to adequately perform gesture recognition under certain contexts of operation.
Skilled artisans will appreciate that elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements in the figures may be exaggerated relative to other elements to help to improve understanding of embodiments of the present invention. In addition, the description and drawings do not necessarily require the order illustrated. It will be further appreciated that certain actions and/or steps may be described or depicted in a particular order of occurrence while those skilled in the art will understand that such specificity with respect to sequence is not actually required.
The apparatus and method components have been represented where appropriate by conventional symbols in the drawings, showing only those specific details that are pertinent to understanding the embodiments of the present invention so as not to obscure the disclosure with details that will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of the description herein.